LeVar Burton Puts His Hands Outside His Car When Pulled Over [VIDEO]

Thanks to the Paula Deen controversy, the subject of racism in America is now at the forefront of a lot of political and social debates. Is racism still present in America? Unfortunately, racism looks like something that won't be going away any time soon.

Social activist and actor LeVar Burton was a guest panelist on CNN recently, discussing the difference between the "N-Word" and "Cracker", and which racial slur is worse. During the course of the discussion, the panel began talking about the way law enforcement reacts to a young white man vs. a young black man. 56-year-old Burton then described his procedure, and the procedure he's taught his 33-year-old son, for when he's pulled over by law enforcement in California, saying he immediately takes off his hat and glasses, and places his hands outside the car window in an effort to keep the officer as calm as possible. Burton says the reason he does this is because he lives in America.

While that's a mentality a lot of us may not be able to relate to, other panelists went right along with Burton's statements, recounting their own experiences of both positive and negative experiences with the police based in their race (primarily the police in Louisiana from the two stories in the video). After checking out the video below, do you think Burton is justified in his cautious approach to dealing with law enforcement? Have you had any experiences yourself that enforce or go against the idea of "White Privilege" in our country?